


A Merry Christmas

by redchemist



Category: Women's Soccer RPF
Genre: Christmas Fluff, F/F, One-Shot, USWNT
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-09
Updated: 2017-12-09
Packaged: 2019-02-12 09:47:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,513
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12956616
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/redchemist/pseuds/redchemist
Summary: Hope has Julie open a very special Christmas present.





	A Merry Christmas

“Jules? You have one more present to open.” Hope sat down on the couch, handing her girlfriend a slender box she had plucked from the limbs of their tree.

“Hope… you have given me enough gifts.” Julie sighed good naturedly as she took the box. “You are going to make me look bad.”

“To who Jules? It’s just us and Rogue here.” Hope snorted as she lounged back on their couch by the fire. The two were curled up in their North Carolina cabin while the snow drifted down on Christmas morning.

“I know…” Julie grinned. “You still make me look bad Solo.”

“Umm, I make you look good Jay. Damn good.” Hope winked at the blonde then gestured with her hand not holding the eggnog glass at the present. “Open your gift.”

“Alright.” The blonde stopped arguing and gently tore the paper from open. 

She slid out a slender box, roughly 6 inches in length from the reindeer-covered paper. The paper was balled up and tossed into the laundry basket with the rest of the wrapping paper, to be bagged and recycled later. Julie opened the box, fully expecting a necklace or a bracelet – her wife loved to spoil her with jewelry.

Inside, rather than a piece of jewelry, was a pregnancy test. A used pregnancy test. Two lines lit up the screen, matching the indicator on the side.

“Hope…” Julie’s blue eyes darted upward, seeking Hope’s. The goalkeeper had a large grin on her face as she set down her eggnog.

“Yes?”

“Is this yours?” Julie dared for a moment to hope. The couple had been trying to have a baby for a few years now, once Hope had decided to hang up her gloves for good. As far as Julie knew, they hadn’t been successful.

\---

“Don’t stare at it sweetheart. Let’s leave it here and come back when the timer goes off.” Julie tugged on Hope’s hand, dragging her out of the bathroom. “You know that staring at a kettle won’t make it boil.”

“I know…” The older woman sighed as Julie pulled her into her arms. “We’ve just been trying for months…”

“I know baby.” Julie cooed, rubbing Hope’s back. “And we haven’t had any luck yet. But remember what the doc said. It could take several rounds for it to work.”

“But what if it isn’t the procedure Jay? What if it is me?” The brunette’s voice wavered as she fought back tears. Julie’s heart broke at the sound.

“Honey it isn’t you. We had all the tests done. You will carry our baby. This is just a trial we have to get through.” Julie placed a kiss on Hope’s soft curls as she continued to rub her back. She knew these few months had been hard on her girlfriend.

The pair tracked Hope’s ovulation and tried every other month to conceive a child of their own. Hope had changed her diet in hopes of aiding their conception. Each month, the negative pregnancy test tore her down a little more. Julie watched it happened, holding her close as the tears and disappointment washed over them. She had told Hope that any month she wanted to stop, that they could. There were other ways to have a baby of their own; they could find a surrogate or adopt a child. The stubborn older woman had insisted that she wanted to carry Julie’s child, so the baby would be theirs. Julie didn’t have the heart to resist her.

Hope stayed in the comfort of Julie’s arms until the timer went off. Before Julie could speak, she dashed into the bathroom. When she didn’t immediately run back out, Julie knew that it wasn’t good news. The blonde headed into the bathroom and found her love perched on the sink, the negative pregnancy test in her hands.

“I’m so sorry Jay.” Hope’s voice crumbled as she spoke, tears streaming down her cheeks.

“Hope…” The younger woman walked over and hugged Hope tight, wanting to take all the despair and hopelessness that Hope felt from her shoulders. The older woman struggled throughout much of her life. Julie wanted so badly to make this dream come easily for her. “You have nothing to apologize for. It just wasn’t meant to be this month. So we will try again in a little while and keep trying until we have our baby.”

Carefully, Julie picked Hope up from the sink. The older woman wrapped her legs around JJ’s torso, happy she didn’t have to separate from her. She wasn’t sure she would be able to hold herself up, much less stand or move. Julie carried them back to the bedroom and slowly maneuvered them into the bed. She felt Hope bury deeper into her chest once she had pulled the covers up. Sure, they had things that probably needed doing. Life didn’t stop, no matter how badly they both wished it would. That could all wait for now. The blonde desired nothing more than to hold her girlfriend as she wept for the child they seemed, at times, destined to never conceive.

\---

Julie stared at her wife on the couch, her blue eyes searching Hope’s for any sign of half-truth. She found none, only uncontained joy and love.

“Yes sweetheart. We are having a baby Jay.” Hope murmured quietly, unable to keep the grin from spreading across her face.

Julie grinned and scrambled over to the couch. She raised herself up and captured Hope’s lips in a searing kiss. They were finally going to have a baby! When they separated, Julie rested her forehead on her wife’s and gently placed a hand on Hope’s sweater-clad stomach.

“Our baby. You are carrying our baby.” Julie can’t stop grinning. “When did you know?”

“I suspected at the beginning of the month, but I didn’t want to get my hopes up in case it was another false alarm. I took that test last week. Well, that one and several others.” Hope confessed, making Julie giggle.

“I don’t blame you sweetheart. Not after everything.” The blonde kissed Hope’s forehead.

“I haven’t told anyone, except you.”

“You didn’t tell your mom?” Julie was shocked. Hope and her mom had grown closer after the goalkeeper retired. She knew that Judy and Hope talked often about their struggles to conceive. The blonde was glad that Hope had someone to lean on when Julie was away with the team.

“Nope. I wanted you to be the first.” Hope cracked a grin. “I wanted it to be our little secret for just a moment.” 

Julie couldn’t stop smiling. All the struggles and pain were worth it for the joy radiating off her wife. She tugged Hope up off the couch and pulled her close. The brunette tucked herself in Julie’s arms and swung her hips along with Julie’s to a tune only the blonde could hear.

“We should tell her when we do Christmas tomorrow. You know she will be over the moon to have a grandbaby.”

“You think? Even with it being so early?” Hope lifted her head from Julie’s shoulder. “What if…”

“Nope. Don’t let your head go there sweetheart.” Julie nuzzled her nose. “Our baby is going to be healthy. She will have my eyes and your attitude and be the best at whatever she wants to do. Because we will raise her to have big dreams and help her achieve them all.” Julie’s confidence helped damper down Hope’s fears. “And I have a feeling we will be calling both of our moms for advice quite often.”

“Alright…we just have to figure out how to tell her.” Hope crinkled her eyebrows as she racked her brain for a creative way to tell her mom.

“Well…I might have just the thing. Sit tight.” Julie pecked Hope’s lips then bounded off towards the back of their home. Hope stood for a moment, wondering what the younger woman could be up to.  
Shaking her head, she returned to the couch and her eggnog. She would find out soon enough. Draining her eggnog, Hope settled into the couch while she waited for Julie to return.

Julie returned to her love with a bag in her hand. From within it, she drew out a small piece of clothing and handed it to Hope. The goalkeeper examined the cloth. It was a small, grey onesie, with the words _“Jedi-in-Training”_ printed next to a small, blue lightsaber. She couldn’t help but smile as she ran her finger over the words before looking up at Julie.

“When did you get this?”

“When I was out shopping with Mel on Black Friday. I saw it and couldn’t resist picking it up. I tucked it away in my suitcase to give to you when the time is right. I thought we could wrap it up and give it to your mom.”

“That is brilliant.” Hope grinned and leaned over to kiss Julie. “I can’t wait to see the look on her face when she realizes what it means.

“Me either sweetheart.” Julie whispered, leaning in for another kiss. “Me either.”

**Author's Note:**

> Yeah, I know, more (lightly edited) fluff. Honestly, with the world being as crappy as it is these days, we need more fluff (it also helps keep my depression from rearing it's ugly head). So, this idea popped in my head and I just let it flow. As always, let me know what you think.  
> -Red


End file.
